Oscillating printing-press



UNITED STATES PATENT FFicE.

OSCILLATING PRINTING-PRESS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 229,114, dated June 22, 1880.

Application filed March 19, 1880. (No model.)

To all whom'z't may concern:

Be it known that L'LoUIs FRIK, a citizen of Germ any, residin g at Philadelphia, in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsyvlania, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Printing-Presses; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters or figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to improvements in what are termed oscillating printing-presses, and is more especially adapted for use as an amateur printing-press and for office use, for piliinting cards, labels, small circulars, and the My improvement consists of the novel arrangement and combination of adjustable gripers and guide, and a gage so constructed and operated that it can be usedas either a gage alone or a gage and dropper, all of which will be fully explained in the ensuing general description, and so specifically pointed out in the claims that a more explicit preliminary statement is unnecessary.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a front elevation of my invention, the parts being at rest and the platen ready to receive the blank to be printed. Fig. 2 is an end View of the same, the platen being partially advanced toward the bed. Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional elevation of my invention, the parts being in the positionthey occupy at the time the platen has reached the bed. Fig. .4. is a plan sectional view of parts of my invention. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of one of the spring-cams forming part of my invention.

The various operative parts of the press to which my improvements are attached will be mounted on asuitable frame-work, A. A portion only of the press is shown in the drawings, as the improvements which constitute my invention relate entirely to the platen B and its movements. The platen B is pivoted to the frame A by means of the arms b, and will be worked in the usual manner. A gage-bar, 0,

consisting of a stirrup-shaped clamp, extends across the face of the platen B, and is adjustably secured thereto by the set-screws e. 'The length and thickness of the clamp 0 will be proportionate to the size of the press to which it may be attached.

At one end of the clamp G is a slot, y, within which is fitted the flexible standard D. This standard D serves as a support for the side gage, d, which is loosely fitted in a slot formed in the upper part of the standard D, and it can therefore be readily adjusted laterally, and serves as a guide for the cards, 850., that are placed on the platen.

The standard D may be raised or lowered in the slot y, and so held rigidly in position bya wedge, set-screw, or spring. The standard D beingformed of elastic material, and so located that its edge is in line with the face of the platen, it causes the guide (1 to press closely upon the tympan-sheet, as shown at Fig. 4., thus preventing the cards, 850., from slipping beneath the edge of the guide d.

The clamp G has formed at each end, extending outwardly from the face of theplaten, arms f, which support, within elongated slots f, the rock-shaft g, at a suitable distance from the face of the platen B.

Between the face of the platen and the clamp O are inserted the ends of the bent wire rod j, which may be of any desired thickness, and serve to keep the clamp 0 from immediate contact with the face of the platen B, for reasons hereinafter more fully explained.

On the rock-shaft g is a flange, g, which rests, when the parts are at rest, against the platen and serves as a gage, and subsequent] y, by reason of the movements of the rock-shaft g, as a dropper; and as the clamp O is held from immediate contact with the platen by the ends of rod j, the cards, &c., that have been printed are allowed to pass downward into a box or other receptacle beneath.

The movements of the rock shaft 9 are produced in unity with and by the reciprocating action of the platen, a spring-cam, h, and a crank-arm, '5, which may either form a part it. This arm '5 has a projection, i, at its end,

.of the rock-shaft g or be rigidly attached to which, as the platen B advances toward the bed-plate, presses against the inner side of the spring-cam h, and, as the platen reaches the passes beyond it.

On the return of the platen O to its normal position the inclined edge h (which may be any angle found best suited for the purpose) of the cam It causes the crank-arm i to be elevated and flange g to be therefore removed from contact with the platen thus permitting the cards, 850., to drop in the manner above stated.

The spring-cam h is so formed that when the stud of the crank arm i has passed over its inclined edge h, it allows the crank-arm i to fall into its normal position, and the flange g, consequently, again rests against the platen B, ready to receive another card, &c. The crank-arm t, after being released from the cam It, may be caused to return to its normal position either by its weight or a suitably-arranged spring.

Ido notconfine myself to the peculiar form of the device constituting the gage and dropper, consisting of the rock-shaft g, flange g, and crank i, as it may be changed in style without departingfrom the nature of my invention, so long as the general principles embodied are retained.

It will readily be understood that the gage and dropping device described, being supported by the clamp O, which is secured to the platen by the set screws 6, may be quickly and most accurately adjusted up or down to meet the requirements of the size of the cards, &c., to be printed.

If desired, the gage and dropping device may be removed from the supporting-clamp O, and by dispensing with the bent rod j, which intervenes between it and the platen, as described above, the said clamp G can be used as a gage alone, independently of the gage and dropping device, and would constitute a firm support for the cards, 850., when, from the nature of the press or work, the dropping device could not be used.

The frisket consists of a rocking shaft, m, moving loosely in the bearings m, at the base of the platen on the arm b, and the flexible standards a, rigidly secured thereto, which have at their upper ends the T-headed cross-bars n, that constitute the gripers. These crossbars a are adj ustably fitted in slots formed in the upper part of the flexible standardsn, and can be laterally adjusted therein to suit circumstances.

The shaft m is provided with a rearwardlyprojecting arm, to which is firmly secured a sleeve, 0, which incloses and slides freely on a downwardly-curved rod, 7', attached to the rear of frame A in any suitable position and extending forward any required length.

As the shaft m cannot, for manifest reasons, turn in its bearings but a limited distance, though allowed to partake of the movements of the platen as the sleeve 0 moves freely on the rod 7", therefore on oscillating the platen B toward the bedit comes in contact with the gripers n, which are forcibly pressed against it and hold the blank until the impression is made.

On the platen B receding from the bed, it is obvious that the gripers will be raised from the blank, and space given for another to be placed on the platen.

If found desirable, the chase may be madeof less thickness at its bottom than at the top, for the purpose of allowing the clamp G to be attached to the platen when the distance be tween the platen and chase at the time they approach nearest to each other would be too narrow without such an arrangement of the chase to permit the clamp to intervene, as is the case in some presses.

Instead of using the ends of the rod j for the purpose stated, shoulders may be formed on the inner side of the clamp G, that will serve to keep the central portion away from the face. of the platen in a similar manner to that when it is used, which would render the rod j unnecessary.

The clamp C may be reversed, so that the I broad strap would be at the back of the platen. The projections through which the setscrews 6 pass would then be between the platen and chase; but the set-screws 0 could be arranged to work through the strap at the back. The projecting arms f would also be made to extend from the opposite side of the clamp O on which they are represented in the drawmgs.

By using these modifications the wire rod j would be dispensed with, and such an arrangement of the clamp may be found preferable to that shown.

The clamp C may be so formed as to be secured to the platen from below instead of at the sides, as shown in the drawings, and still serve the purpose for which it is designed, and also be adjustable on the platen, as described, by having the stirrups of the clamp of greater length, and extending beneath the platen, when the style of press will permit it.

Some of the advantages of my improvement in the adjustable gage are, that it affords a very reliable support for the paper, without the dan ger and inconvenience of being removed by accident, like the spaces generally used by printers, and which spoil the tympan-sheet by making holes and leaving lumps of paste; and it can be adjusted with far more accuracy and much quicker than the old gage-pins or spaces.

Having thus described my invention, what I wish it to be understood that I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, 1s-

1. The gage and dropping device, consisting of the clamp O, rock-shaft g, having flange g and crank-arm i, and spring-cam h, all arranged, combined, and operating as shown and described.

IIO

2. The combination of the oscillating platen In testimony whereof I affix my signature B, standards 11, cross-bar n, friskct-shaft m, in presence of two witnesses. sleeve 0, and rod 1", as shown and described,

- and for the purpose specified. LOUIS FRIK.

3. The combination of platen B, clamp 0, having slot 1, adjustable standard D, and Witnesses: sliding gage d, as described, and for the pur- OSWALD KUNTZE, pose specified. ALBERT REINBOTH. 

